Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown launches next week. While we really dug the game, there's one odd detail that stuck out: one of the game's minor NPCs will be voiced by a text-to-speech program at launch, seemingly because someone forgot to record and add a human being's voice for the role.
  • alyaza [they/she]@beehaw.orgOPM
    0·
    10 months ago

    While we really dug the game (you can check out our review for more on that), there’s one odd detail that stuck out we can’t help but give its own article: one of the game’s minor NPCs will be voiced by a text-to-speech program at launch, seemingly because someone — probably Ubisoft — forgot to record and add a human being’s voice for the role.

    what a… weird thing to have happen. i’m not sure what the utility of it would be for one minor NPC but this being an accident honestly strains charitability, i think

    • Pxtl@lemmy.caEnglish
      0·
      10 months ago

      Trial balloon.

      This character is the thin edge of a very large wedge.

    • frog 🐸@beehaw.orgEnglish
      0·
      10 months ago

      Yep, looks really suspect. Even if it’s true that they forgot to get someone to record the lines, it does seem implausible that they couldn’t source any voice actor (or even someone on their own staff) to record the dialogue and get it added to the game, even at short notice.

    • brsrklf@jlai.lu
      0·
      10 months ago

      "We didn’t mean to do this, honest!

      Now, on a scale from 1 to 10, please tell us how strongly you feel about this. And, hypothetically, whether you’d mind if a few dozens more NPC were like that too."

      • jarfil@beehaw.org
        0·
        10 months ago

        “On a scale from 0% to 500%, how much more would you pay for a game where main characters used [insert your favorite actors/people]'s AI cloned voices?”

    • jarfil@beehaw.org
      0·
      10 months ago

      Not saying this was a honest mistake, but I do see how that could happen:

      1. Game story gets written
      2. Dialogs are worked on
      3. TTS versions of all dialogs are generated
      4. Once they get approved, talent is cast
      5. Talent is scheduled to record the dialogs and get paid
      6. Final dialogs get included in the game

      Knowing how game studios love to push everyone into “rush mode” the months before launch, I can see how, for a minor NPC, someone could have forgotten to cast and/or book a recording of some dialogs… while everyone is getting pressured to release NOW OR ELSE!!1!

      Honestly, I wonder how many minor NPCs in games have been TTS all along, and nobody noticed or cared.